Queijos de Portugal/Cheeses of Portugal

[Vasconcelos]

That's pretty expensive anyway, 500g of Queijo da ilha here costs like 4 to 5€.


Hmmm, I wonder if it's worth exporting.

[Riki]

São Jorge cheese:


It is made from unpasteurised cow's milk, and the pâte has small eyes.
It has a Protected Geographical Status (PDO) certification.

Requeijão:
Requeijão is a milk-derived product, produced in Portugal.
It is a loose, ricotta-like cheese used to make cheese spreads. A mild, unsalty ricotta can be substituted. This variety is most often sold in the markets wrapped in fresh corn husks.
The Portuguese product is white to yellowish-white, solid, and usually having a characteristic strong taste; typically sold in specially designed draining plastic or basket-like weaved containers, or in plastic cups.

Manufacturing:

Skim milk is held until lactic acid bacteria acidify and coagulate its proteins. The curdled milk is stirred and heated to a temperature as high as 80 °C (175 °F), then the whey is drained off and the curd is gathered in bags and pressed. The curd is placed in flat pans, broken up, and washed with warm skim milk, to form a mixture consisting of two parts milk to one part curd. This mixture is stirred and heated, as before, until the casein in the milk curdles and adheres to the mass of curd. The steps of draining, pressing, adding more skim milk, and heating are repeated once more. The curd is drained again, salted (2 to 2.5% by weight) and kneaded on a table for about 15 minutes. Hot butterfat or rich cream is added, about one part of butterfat for every five parts of curd, and the mixture is once again heated and stirred. The cheese is then molded in parchment-lined boxes.
About 11 kg of cheese is obtained from 100 kg of skim milk and 3.4 kg of cream. Composition varies, but a typical cheese can contain 55–70% water, 8–20% fat, and 16–20.5% protein.


I eat Requeijão with pumpkin jam.Delicious.

[HispaniaSagrada]

Eu gosto muito do limiano quando esta molzinho, fatias grossas, e com marmelada mas ca e muito, muito caro mas de vez em quando...

[Svipdag]

I'm sitting here drooling and trying to figure out how to get ahold of some. I shall ask Whole Foods, which has a wonderful cheese
department, if they can procure it. They regularly carry Appenzeller which nobody else does, so maybe there is some hope.

"TRAHIT SVA QVEMQVE VOLVPTAS" - PVBLIVS VERGILIVS MARO

[Atlantic Islander]

This guy has some of his facts wrong:

Country of Origin: Portugal
Region of Origin: Azores
Protected Name Designation: DOP Portugal
Milk Type: Cow
Milk Treatment: Raw
Classification: Firm
Rennet: Animal
Rind: Natural
Shape: Wheel
Size: Varies
Weight: 16-25 lbs

The island of São Jorge from which this cheese gets its name, is located 900 miles from the west coast of Portugal and is part of the Azores archipelago.

Discovered in the 15th century by the Flemish, the islands have long been of strategic importance in terms of oceanic navigation. As a result, Azoreans developed a brisk trade with passing merchant ships, the crews of which sought food for their long voyages.

Situated in the middle of the Atlantic Gulf Stream, the Azores has a mild, damp climate and, due to its volcanic geology, a richly fertile soil that supports abundant vegetation. All these factors contribute towards favorable conditions for dairying - the island is home to 20,000 dairy cows – and cheesemaking.

Cheesemaking on the island dates back to when settlers moved there from the Netherlands and various other regions on the mainland, bringing with them both livestock and cheesemaking knowledge. The Azores have traditionally been home to a variety of cheeses. These range from fresher styles, designed to be eaten within a few days of production, to more robust, aged cheeses able to withstand the rigors of transportation - and consequently often sold to ships’ crews to sustain them for many months at sea.

Made from raw cow’s milk, São Jorge cheese falls into this second category. It is the largest of the Portuguese cheeses weighing between 8kg (16 lb) to 12kg (26lb) and is aged for between three and seven months before release.

To make the cheese, cows are milked twice a day and the evening milk gets delivered to the cheese plant about 8:30pm with cheesemaking commencing right away, continuing through the night from about 9 pm to 4 am. Then, after morning milking another round of cheese is made.

A cooked curd pressed cheese, São Jorge is made by three dairies on the island although just one produces cheese that has been awarded DOP (name protected) status. The DOP status is awarded to cheeses matured for a minimum of 90 days although usually wheels of São Jorge are released at three, four and seven months.

As a side note, São Jorge is so beloved that many Portuguese and Azorean immigrant cheesemakers in the U.S. make their own version as a tribute to their homeland. The most well-known of these are fifth-generation cheesemakers from São Jorge, Joe and Mary Matos, of California’s Matos Cheese Factory near Santa Rosa, an hour north of San Francisco.
São Jorge cheeses have a firm, slightly waxy texture with a straw-colored paste dotted with small eyes (holes). Flavors are mild, yet full and buttery, with an underlying tang that becomes more pronounced with age. Aromas are rich and aromatic. São Jorge works well as a table cheese or added to everyday dishes where a tangy, robust flavor is desired.

Pairings: A full bodied red wine such as Port or a Madeira wine pair wonderfully with São Jorge.

source

[Atlantic Islander]

I'm sitting here drooling and trying to figure out how to get ahold of some. I shall ask Whole Foods, which has a wonderful cheese
department, if they can procure it. They regularly carry Appenzeller which nobody else does, so maybe there is some hope.

"TRAHIT SVA QVEMQVE VOLVPTAS" - PVBLIVS VERGILIVS MARO

There are Portuguese in Connecticut, so you should be able to find a place that sells Portuguese cheese.

[HispaniaSagrada]

I'm sitting here drooling and trying to figure out how to get ahold of some. I shall ask Whole Foods, which has a wonderful cheese
department, if they can procure it. They regularly carry Appenzeller which nobody else does, so maybe there is some hope.

"TRAHIT SVA QVEMQVE VOLVPTAS" - PVBLIVS VERGILIVS MARO

You should be able to find some Portuguese shops around Hartford. If you ever come around the Bridgeport area then for sure. It's not cheap tho. But yea if you can get your store to get it for you that might be easier if you have no clue where to go or look.

[solarisregvm]

1 more to the collection It's Sheep Milk Cheese produced in the South of Alentejo.